


Sign of the Sky - One Shot Specials

by RosePocky



Series: Sign of the Sky - One Shot Specials [1]
Category: Warrior Cats - Fandom
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-06
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:41:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23044201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosePocky/pseuds/RosePocky
Summary: This is a collection of one-shot stories written for background/minor characters in my Sign of the Sky series who may not get their own novella! Many of these are written in different clans with different characters from different areas in the timeline!I hope you enjoy as I add to these!
Series: Sign of the Sky - One Shot Specials [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1656070





	1. Mudpaw's Test

**Author's Note:**

> This is a collection of one-shot stories written for background/minor characters in my Sign of the Sky series who may not get their own novella! Many of these are written in different clans with different characters from different areas in the timeline!  
> I hope you enjoy as I add to these!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one-shot is set in Riverclan around the same time Dawnwhisker was an apprentice. Mudpaw, later Mudcreak, is approached by his father for a test.  
> Mudcreak is Twitchstar's first deputy in Riverclan and is known for his silent, stoic nature. He and Twitchstar grew up to be a ferocious pair, two cats no one would ever dare mess with.

High above the Riverclan camp in the lake territory, the sun shone brightly as if it were ignoring the grey clouds that were beginning to roll in. Sprucestream grunted and opened his eyes. His mate, Gingerflower, was nestled against him, their pelts brushing. He touched his nose to her golden forehead and got to his paws. She cracked open an eye and looked up at him as he stretched.  
“Is it morning already? The night is too short in green-leaf.” She yawned, standing up and padding over to touch noses with him. Sprucestream chuckled under his breath.  
“I know, I know. But life moves quickly. Like prey, we have to keep up.” He remarked as he padded out of the warriors den. Twitching his ears, he looked around the clearing before retrieving a plump fish from the fresh-kill pile. He settled down in a patch of sunlight beside Gingerflower and began to eat. He had barely taken a few bites from the fish before the chattering of young cats sounded nearby. Sprucestream’s torn ears flattened and he suppressed a growl of annoyance when he heard Twitchpaw’s voice. The young apprentice was growing into a fine warrior, and Sprucestream hated him for it. Vinestar, their leader, clearly favoured the black tom over him. Surely he should prefer the son of his current deputy, Blackflash, over some over-confident apprentice! The worst part was that Sprucestream’s own son and Blackflash’s grandson, Mudpaw, was his best friend. The young brown tabby padded alongside Twitchpaw now, the two laughing about something as they went to fetch some food from the pile before they inevitably continued their training. Sprucestream’s tail tip twitched with anger and Gingerflower looked up. She placed her paw on his and gave him a gentle look. She was always so kind, and loved her son dearly. She clearly only wanted Mudpaw to be happy, but allowed Sprucestream to work the young tom into his pawsteps. His methods weren’t how she would do it, but she was wise enough to look away.  
Sprucestream huffed and got to his paws.  
“Mudpaw!” He called to his son, and the apprentice looked up from his conversation with Twitchpaw.  
“Yes? What is it? I’m about to go training!”  
“Not anymore; you’re coming hunting with me and your mother. Let’s go.”  
Mudpaw hesitated. He looked back at Twitchpaw, who seemed irritated with the interference.  
“What’s this shouting about?” Blackflash emerged from Vinestar’s den, casting a glance over to his kin. Sprucestream walked over to his father, Gingerflower and Mudpaw following.  
“I’d like to take Mudpaw out of training for the day. I feel like I don’t spend enough time with him, and would like to see how he’s doing. Surely, that’s allowed.” He held his steady gaze with his father, who’s eyes flickered over to the reluctant apprentice. He watched him for a moment, before nodding.  
“Of course. If he is to follow in our strong pawsteps, he must learn from us directly. I hope hunting is well today for you.” Blackflash turned away and began ordering patrols for the day. Sprucestream smiled and began to walk out of camp. Mudpaw‘s shoulder’s sagged and he followed beside his mother.  
“Twitchpaw! I’ll catch up with you later!” He called behind him. However, Sprucestream nudged him to walk faster and he couldn’t hear the other’s response.  
Sprucestream led his family into the wooded part of Riverclan territory, urging Mudpaw to hurry and walk beside him.  
“I have shorter legs than you, it’s harder to catch up.” The apprentice frowned.  
“Then work harder to catch up. If you make excuses, your clan will leave you behind.” Sprucestream responded.  
“How is your training going.”  
“Good. Vinestar said me and Twitchpaw are a good pair in battle.” The mention of the black apprentice made Sprucestream narrow his eyes.  
“You spend a lot of time with Twitchpaw, hm?”  
“So? We’re friends.”  
“Best friends?”  
“Mhm.”  
“Warriors shouldn’t have best friends, they distract you from becoming the best you can be.”  
“You have Gingerflower.” Mudpaw remarked bitterly. Gingerflower stiffened. Sprucestream stopped walking and wound his tail with his mate’s.  
“Yes, she supports me and I support her. We’re a team. We build each other up and we’re never distracted. You and Twitchpaw are different. What if he uses you to get to the top?” Mudpaw growled in response.  
“Twitchpaw is good! He wouldn’t use me like that.”  
“How do you know? You should always be suspicious of your clanmates. If you are always alert, then nothing can get past you.”  
“Me and Twitchpaw are allies. We work together and we’ll both make it to the top. I know you want me to follow in yours and Blackflash’s pawsteps, but I can do it without your help!” Mudpaw’s fur bristled indignantly. Sprucestream opened his mouth to argue back, when a rustling in the bushes nearby caught his attention. The fur along his scarred spine rose, and he watched carefully. He scented the air.  
“Kittypet.” An idea popped into his mind and he turned to his son with a smile.  
“Alright. Prove to me that you can be strong without Twitchpaw around. Fight that kittypet.”  
“What?” Mudpaw looked puzzled.  
“Do it.” Sprucestream responded sternly. Gingerflower took a step back, silent. Mudpaw frowned and held his gaze with his father, before taking a few steps forwards and dropping into a hunting crouch. He waited for the perfect time to strike, muscles shifting under his pelt. The rustling in the bushes started again, and Mudpaw leapt into the air. His claws connected with the soft fur of a grey kittypet, who screeched in terror. Mudpaw snarled and dragged his claws down their side, jumping back when they feebly batted a paw in his direction. The kittypet stumbled back, spine arched and green eyes wide in fear. A blue collar hung from their neck with a shiny pendant and gemstone attached. Their long fluffy fur was matted with leaves and blood seeped out of a cut on their side.  
“Hey, that hurt! What was that for!” They huffed. Mudpaw growled and they shrunk back.  
“You’re on Riverclan territory. You’re trespassing!” He hissed, before lunging at them again. The kittypet squeaked and began to run, but their long fur was easy to grab at and pin down, and within moments, they were staring up at Mudpaw who towered over them. He slashed his claws across their face, then their belly, and then their ear. He snorted in amusement and tapped a bloody claw lightly against their tag.  
“Fancy.” He scoffed.  
“I-it’s my nametag. I-I’m Agate.”  
“What a strange name. But of course, you’re a soft kittypet who doesn’t even stand a chance against me, an apprentice.” Mudpaw glanced over at Sprucestream. He had been watching his son from a few tail-lengths away, chest puffed out with pride. Now, he walked over, eliciting a gasp from Agate.  
“You look s-so hurt! All those scars! I-if we can stop fighting, I-I can bring you back to my owners! T-they’ll help you.” Agate pleaded, closing an eye as blood trickled over it from a scar across their muzzle. Sprucestream snarled.  
“As if I’d go anywhere with a useless kittypet. You trespassed on our territory, and now you’ll pay the price.” He turned to Mudpaw.  
“Kill them.” Mudpaw looked up in shock.  
“You only told me to fight them! Killing them is wrong.” He protested.  
“Killing is necessary sometimes. It’s the difference between helping your clan or allowing them to be defeated. If you want to prove that you’re worthy, kill Agate.” He insisted. Mudpaw’s gaze flickered between his father and the kittypet, who whimpered and cried beneath him. Narrowing his eyes, the apprentice drew his blood-stained paw back, unsheathed his claws, and slashed them across Agate’s throat. The kittypet’s eyes glazed over and rolled back as blood endlessly gushed from their throat. Their body gave a pathetic jerk before laying still. Mudpaw shook droplets of crimson from his paws and stood back. Sprucestream gave him an approving nod, walking over to the kittypet’s body. He picked them up by their scruff and dragged them to the other side of the border. Gingerflower rejoined them, averting her eyes from the bloody mess of fur on the ground. She led Mudpaw to a puddle to wash his paws, an unreadable emotion in her eyes as the water turned red. The family were silent walking back to camp, but Sprucestream now knew that Mudpaw was capable of following his family’s legacy. Nothing would stop him when he had power.


	2. Lemonbreeze's Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lemon was a kittypet with a comfortable life and his best friend by his side. When a tragic accident changed his life forever, he found a group of cats who helped him find his purpose in life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another one-shot! This time, it's for one of my favourite OCs, Lemonbreeze! Enjoy!
> 
> As always, follow my art and animation on my twitter @roserocks_art, my Instagram @roserocks.art, or my YouTube @RosePocky!

“Lemon! Plum!” Time to go!” The familiar voice rang through the house. A short, soft-furred tom trotted towards the front door, tail raised at the sight of his owner. Another cat followed, stretching and yawning before brushing against his two-leg’s bag. The suitcases were all set at the front door, and two empty travel crates sat nearby.  
“Already? I thought I’d be able to have at least a little more sleep before we left.” The tom with a darker pelt lifted a paw to wipe his face. The other cat purred loudly.  
“Plum, there’ll be plenty of time to sleep when we get there! Monty said there’s fields near the site! Won’t that be fun?” Plum rolled his eyes lightheartedly.  
“Lemon, you shouldn’t listen to everything that neighbourhood cat says. He talks nonsense half the time.” Lemon huffed indignantly before glancing up at their owner. The two-leg was murmuring something to himself as he read over a leaflet. Lemon didn’t understand many two-leg words, but Plum had taught him what he’d need to know. From what they had heard, they were going to a park with large monsters that doubled as houses. They didn’t move, but they were nice to stay in and have some relaxing time away from home. Their two-leg put the leaflet away and gently ushered each cat into a travel crate. He had softened the inside with a blanket and a little toy, perfect for keeping them entertained during the journey. Lemon purred and led down once inside, letting his owner shut the barred door and pick it up. He heard Plum yawn inside the other crate, and he chuckled to himself; he’d most likely sleep for most of the ride. Once the crates and bags were inside the two-leg’s monster, he got inside and woke it up. The monster rumbled to life and slowly rolled off the driveway. Picking up speed, it continued down the road as the two-leg directed it. Lemon stretched his neck and pressed his face against the bars so he could watch out of the window. He couldn’t see much from the low perspective he had, but began to daydream as the clouds and two-leg dens passed by. Plum was already snoring within minutes and Lemon heard the two-leg chuckle to himself.

Lemon blinked open an eye, yawning and splaying out his claws as he stretched his spine. He must have fallen asleep; the rhythm of the monster’s rumbling must have soothed him to sleep. Glancing out of his cage, he could see the two-leg still driving. It was getting darker outside now and the dens were gone. Now, it was just steep, rocky walls and empty roads. Lemon’s ears pricked up as the two-leg switched on the noise-making box. A melody of two-leg sounds came from it, and his owner began to copy it. Lemon purred, meowing along to the noise. The two-leg glanced round at him, laughing heartily before continuing. Lemon’s heart swelled. He loved his owner and Plum more than he could ever express. Life couldn’t be any better. Lemon continued to mew to make his owner laugh, but he realised the two-leg wasn’t laughing anymore. He wasn’t singing either. His voice grew loud and he waved an arm frantically. Lemon tilted his head to one side, ears flattening as his owner pressed on the wheel and caused the monster to roar. Some lights in front of them grew brighter and brighter until it blinded him and he couldn’t see anything. Then, the monster violently shook and a loud bang deafened the small cat. He cowered in the back of his crate, digging his claws into the base of it as the monster tipped onto its side. He yowled in terror as his two-leg screamed. The monster made an awful scraping sound and began to spin. Lemon was violently thrashed about inside the crate. He squeezed his eyes shut and curled up tightly. Glass was shattering, metal creaking and breaking, it was all too much. Suddenly, the monster made heavy impact on something, and Lemon was thrown to the ground. He didn’t have a chance to react before everything went black.

Before he could even open his eyes, a sharp pain shot through his body. He winced and shuddered. The ringing in his ears was still as loud as before and he couldn’t feel one of his hind legs. Finally, he mustered up the energy to open an eye. His vision blurred red and he groaned, pushing himself up with his paws. The crate he was in was shattered around him. Plastic lay strewn across the grass and the metal bars stuck in the ground nearby. He gulped; thank the stars they hadn’t hurt him. His ear hurt badly and he noticed one of his forelegs had a rather deep cut from the glass. It hurt to put pressure on it, but he gritted his teeth and hoisted himself into a sitting position. His hind leg suddenly began to hurt and he yowled, twisting round to see it stuck under a heavy chunk of dark grey metal. Lemon blinked the tears from his eyes and began to pull. It hurt more than anything had hurt before, but after a few tugs, his leg was free. Limp and bloody, but free. Standing on three legs, he hopped away from where he had awoken. He could hear voices over the crackling of small flames nearby and walked closer. He squinted through the thick smoke and spotted… two-legs! They’d come to help! Lemon began to walk faster, but stopped in his tracks when he saw what they were all crouched over. His owner lay unmoving on the ground, crimson trickling from his mouth. A two-leg in a bright yellow jacket pressed her ear to his chest. Her face fell. She stood up and shook her head. Lemon knew what this meant. He didn’t need to understand two-leg language to know what this meant. His owner was dead. Another two-leg gently pulled a white blanket over his face, and Lemon felt his legs begin to buckle beneath him. What would he do now? What would he and Plum- Plum! Lemon jerked round. Where was Plum? He frantically limped over to different areas of the wreckage, ignoring the searing pain in his legs and head. He yowled in a broken voice, wailing for his best friend. A two-leg’s call got his attention, and he hopped as fast as he could over to where they were. He needn’t have gone, as he could see what the two-leg was shouting about from where he was before. Lemon’s heart shattered. Plum was curled on the ground, glazed eyes open and filled with empty terror. His mouth was wide open, as if he had been yowling for help. A metal bar from his crate was pierced through his throat and blood gushed endlessly onto the grass. Other shards of debris were scattered around him and it was clear that Plum had died as soon as the monster crashed to the ground. Lemon looked up at where the monster had fallen from; it was a steep cliff with rocks jutting out from its slope. Lemon looked back at Plum, then to the blanket covering his owner. He was alone. Before Lemon could even begin to fully process what was happening, a two-leg pointed to him with a shout. It began to walk over, crouching down and offering out a hand. Lemon felt adrenaline shoot through his veins and the only thing on his mind was “RUN.” He turned away and began to sprint through the woods and away from the wreckage. He didn’t know where he was, he didn’t know where he was going, he wasn’t even sure that the two-legs were following him. All he knew was that he needed to get away. He couldn’t be there any longer. Lemon lost track of how long he had been running when he spotted glinting eyes in the darkness ahead. Squinting, he could vaguely make out shapes. Cats! He staggered to a halt before them, eyes wide and frantic. One cat stepped forwards, with muscles rippling beneath her pelt. Her eyes focused on him. “What are you doing here, kittypet?” Her voice wasn’t hostile, but it wasn’t gentle either.  
“I-I.. My best friend, my owner! They.. they..” Lemon felt his head spin. His vision blurred and turned black, and he lost consciousness before he even hit the ground.

The next time he opened his eyes, sunlight blinded him and he shrunk into the bed he was in with a sharp hiss. It took him a moment to realise that this wasn’t his bed at home. There were leaves and feathers stuck to his fur, and he was laying on moss. Lemon carefully opened his eyes again and looked around. He was in a den with makeshift shelves nearby. Neatly organised berries, flowers and leaves decorated them, and a small pool of water shimmered in the light nearby. He looked down at his foreleg, surprised to see a wad of cobwebs and herbs tied around the cut. His hind leg seemingly had the same treatment, but a sturdy stick was tied to it, keeping it stretched out straight. Lemon tried to get to his paws, but it felt like his energy had been sapped; his stomach growled with hunger and his tongue felt dry. The sunlight was suddenly blocked from the den as a shape stood in the entrance. Lemon cowered away, eyes stretched wide. Before him stood a lean, tall she-cat. She had brown fur and sharp green eyes. He realised with a jolt that she was the cat who had spoken to him when he first stumbled across the group of cats last night. The memories of what had happened hit him like a stone wall and he felt winded. His only family was dead, and he was alone, stuck and injured in an unknown place.  
“Oh, good. You’re awake. Lichencreek was beginning to worry you would go to Starclan.” She said, stepping into the den and sitting down before him. Lemon’s thoughts swirled in his mind. Who’s Lichencreek? What’s Starclan? What’s with the strange names? Before he could even think about each one properly, the she-cat spoke again.  
“How’s your pain?” Lemon stared at her, struggling to form words. “I.. It.. It’s okay. Better than.. Than before..” The she-cat seemed patient and nodded softly.  
“I am Fawnstar. I’m the leader of Skyclan. You’re in our medicine den right now. You ran into my patrol last night and passed out. We couldn’t just leave you there, you looked awfully frightened, so we brought you here. Lichencreek is our medicine cat, who treated you overnight and kept you from dying.” Fawnstar pointed to his hind leg with her tail tip. “You’ve broken your leg, cut your foreleg and torn an ear, but he thinks that shock made you pass out.” She shifted her paws and lifted her head. She radiated an aura of confidence and power, and Lemon felt humbled by her presence. Her soft voice was helping him to calm down and think clearly again. Fawnstar spoke again, eyes focused on him.  
“Now, what I would like to know is, who are you, and how did you get here?”


End file.
